Regent street moped robber jailed

A moped robber who targeted a jewellers in Regent Street has been sentenced to eight years in jail.

Jamie Farrell, 31 (13.06.87) of Havelock Street, Islington, appeared at Southwark Crown Court on Monday, 9 July after he pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit robbery and possession of an offensive weapon.

Farrell was one of a group of six men on three mopeds and a motorbike, who arrived at Watches of Switzerland in Regent Street on 5 June at 10:20hrs.

One of the mopeds was driven through the doors of the premises forcing them open and preventing them from being closed by security staff.

Three men wearing black crash helmets then entered the store and attacked the display cases with sledgehammers, targeting the ones that contained Rolex watches.

The other three men who remained outside, including one on a high-powered motorbike, were armed with knives to ward off security staff and members of the public.

Five display cabinets were attacked and 30 Rolex watches were stolen, worth £440,000.

The robbers fled with the stolen watches after the internal security smoke alarm was activated. However, a passing police unit saw what was happening and chased after the robbers, who all ran in different directions.

Farrell was chased and monitored by members of the public before he was detained by police officers in Heddon Street.

As Farrell ran away, he was seen to abandon various items including a pair of gloves, a crash helmet and a bag full of 11 Rolex watches. These items were recovered by police and forensic analysis of the watches and the gloves revealed traces of Farrell’s blood.

Police later recovered a further six Rolex watches from an address in Islington, near to where a moped had been abandoned, in total recovering £309,350 of stolen property belonging to Watches of Switzerland.

Detective Constable Phelim Redmond, of the Met’s Flying Squad, said: “Farrell was among a group of men who carried out a brazen robbery at a jewellers in the centre of London. I would like to thank the members of the public who helped identify Farrell and the items of clothing and stolen goods he had discarded as he fled the scene.

“Officers have recovered 17 out of the 29 watches stolen, worth more than £300,000. However, the damage to the store, including the cabinets destroyed is estimated to be in the region of £100,000.

“The Met is committed to disrupting and detaining anyone involved in moped crimes. The investigation is still ongoing in this case to identify and arrest the other five men involved in this crime.”